Find Every Issue of RAD Online!

Project RAD's up-to-date email newsletters (all 60-plus issues) are now archived on a special page on our website. You will find the headline of the lead article for every issue, but will have to click on the content to read the full issue. The only content you will not find online are special alerts and bulletins, which are reserved for subscribers. RAD provides the only current and weekly update on alcohol issues and policies in the state of Indiana.

Appellate Court Rules Against IABR

The legal battle over how alcohol permits are counted and distributed in the state took a step backwards with a recent appellate court ruling. The lawsuit initially filed by a Project RAD partner, the Indiana Association of Beverage Retailers, was an appeal on just one step of the process from a Marion County trial court. No decision has yet been made by the association on its next legal steps or long-term remedy of its complaint. Here's an update article filed by The Indianapolis Star.

Are ATC Minutes Adequate?

Project RAD filed this request with the state's Public Access Counselor (PAC) last year when it became clear that ATC minutes seemed a bit - inadequate. We filed this request and are now sharing it based on some recent queries we have received about the commission. The PAC, which was initially created by the executive order of former Gov. Frank O'Bannon, can sometimes provide a useful (and free) legal opinion on public agencies and how they handle public meetings and public records.

Here's the PAC response to our query about ATC minutes (bold items are our emphasis):

You ask whether the Indiana Alcohol and Tobacco Commission (the "Commission") is required to create more detailed minutes than those the Commission currently makes available through its website.  The Commission currently does not include information identifying which permits from applicants are approved by a vote of the Commission at its regular meetings. 

The ODL (Open Door Law) contains no requirement that a governing body utilize an agenda or create minutes of its meetings. Regarding minutes and memoranda, the ODL provides the following:

(b) As the meeting progresses, the following memoranda shall be kept:

(1) The date, time, and place of the meeting.

(2) The members of the governing body recorded as either present or absent.

(3) The general substance of all matters proposed, discussed, or decided.

(4) A record of all votes taken, by individual members if there is a roll call.

(5) Any additional information required under IC 5-1.5-2-2.5.

(c) The memoranda are to be available within a reasonable period of time after the meeting for the purpose of informing the public of the governing body's proceedings. The minutes, if any, are to be open for public inspection and copying.

I.C. § 5-14-1.5-4 (emphasis added).  Thus, because the Commission is not required by the ODL to create minutes, it is my opinion that nothing requires the Commission to create more detailed minutes than those it currently posts online. I note, however, that because the Commission is required to create memoranda with the information required by section 4(b), more detailed information regarding votes might be available to you upon request to the Commission.

If I can be of additional assistance, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Best regards,

Andrew J. Kossack

Indiana Public Access Counselor
W470, Indiana Government Center South

402 W Washington Street

Indianapolis, IN 46204

317.233.9435 (p)

317.233.3091 (f)

www.in.gov/pac

Lent is Getting a Makeover

For the first time, the United Methodist Church is urging its 7.8 million U.S. members to refrain from drinking alcohol during Lent. Teetotaling is familiar turf in United Methodism, and now Lent provides a framework to consider the role alcohol plays in individual lives, families and society, according to Cynthia Abrams of the UMC's General Board of Church & Society. "To ask United Methodists to give up alcohol for Lent is provocative because we like to think United Methodists don't drink," said Abrams, who works on alcohol and other health issues. "We decided ... to confront the elephant in the room by doing something provocative and engaging in conversation about it throughout Lent."

Indiana Statehouse Meltdown: Status of Alcohol Bills

Due to the meltdown at the Indiana Statehouse and a walk-out by Democrats, many bills have died a quick death. Not many alcohol bills remain alive in the system, but new language can also show up and repeat like a bad burrito, generally in legislative parlance as amendments during critical final-hour negotiations. At this pace, there is still a long, long way to go. Political compromises can be played out well into a special session and extended lawmaking hours. Dialogue with legislators can still be productive. They are on the taxpayer dime, whether in Indiana or in temporary digs in Illinois. Republican House Speaker Brian Bosma announced last week that absent lawmakers will be subject to fines of $250 per day beginning today.

Valparaiso Police Arrest 33 at Underage Drinking Party

As police were escorting a number of young people from a west side apartment, officers found Alexia Murphy, 18, of Rolling Prairie, outside on the ground clutching her leg. Murphy allegedly told officers she feared being arrested and jumped from a second floor balcony, injuring her ankle. She was taken to Porter hospital in Valparaiso for her injuries and is among those charged with minor consumption of alcohol. Those "hosting" the party were ages 20 and 22. The Times of Northwest Indiana published the names of all the underage drinkers arrested.

Not a Typo: State Plans 1,550 Percent Increase in Special Wine Tax

In California, the Board of Equalization has proposed taxing certain wines as distilled spirits, which would increase the excise tax on the wine from 20 cents a gallon to $3.30 a gallon, a whopping 1,550 percent jump. The higher tax is on wines to which distilled alcohol has been added, such as wine specialties, flavored table wine, wine cocktails, wine coolers or blends of wine from different fruits. The excise tax is paid by manufacturers, wine growers and importers - but can be passed along to consumers by retailers. For the full article in The Orange County Register, click here.

Tuscaloosa Voters: Bring on the Sunday sales 

College students apparently swung the Sunday sales alcohol vote in Tuscaloosa, Alabama (by 78 percent). Here's what a city spokeswoman had to say:"It was a very good turnout, and we are pleased that for the most part things went well," said Robin Edgeworth, the city's legal affairs administrator, whom Maddox designated to speak for the city prior to leaving City Hall before the counting began. "I think a large turnout by students played a large part in what happened."

Until the referendum vote, Tuscaloosa was the largest city in the state that did not permit Sunday sales. Speaking of a student voice, here's the take from the college newspaper The Crimson White.